In 2017, thieves broke into Robert Mortimer’s home in Bradford, England, and among the things they took was Barney, his African grey parrot. Robert put up posters, offered a reward of 680 dollars, and waited for months. Nothing. Over time, he accepted that Barney was lost forever and even came to think that he had died, but he never got rid of his cage: he kept it stored at a relative’s house, just in case. He didn’t want to replace him with another parrot either.
Nine years later, in July 2026, Barney, who was already 19 years old, was found walking alone in the parking lot of an IKEA in Ashton-under-Lyne, 32 kilometers from where he was stolen. A veterinarian scanned his microchip and found his name and hometown, but the phone number on record no longer existed. Gemma Dumbill, who took care of Barney after he was found, searched the internet for “Barney” and “Bradford” until she found the news of the theft from almost a decade ago.
When Robert got him back, Barney had already started saying “Hello” and “Morning” again. Still imitates the sound of the telephone to play pranks on his wife, exactly as he did before disappearing.